J.
T. Moore Middle School
2008 Rising 7th Grade Summer Reading
Required: Standard Classes: Loser by Jerry Spinelli
Annotation: Donald Zinkoff is one of the greatest kids you could ever hope to meet. He laughs easily, he likes people, he loves school, he tries to rescue lost girls in blizzards, he talks to old ladies. The only problem is, he's a loser.
Required: IB/Advanced Classes: What the Moon Saw by Laura Rasau
Annotation: Clara Luna's name means" clear moon" in Spanish, but lately, her head has felt anything but clear. "What The Moon Saw" is an enchanting story of discovering one's true self in the most unexpected place—rural southern Mexico, spending the summer with grandparents she has never known before. International theme
PLUS
Choose one book from this list that you have not previously read:
A Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck
Annotation: The winner of the 2001 Newbery Medal continues the story begun in the Newbery Honor Book "A Long Way from Chicago." Now 15-years old, Mary Alice is going to spend an entire year with her unpredictable Grandma Dowdel--a woman well known for shaking up her neighbors.
Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary D. Schmidt
Annotation: Set in 1912 Maine, this historical novel is based on the true story of a community's destruction. No one in town will let Turner Buckminster forget that he's a minister's son. But then he meets Lizzie Bright Griffin, a smart and sassy girl from a poor nearby island community founded by former slaves, he enters a whole new world.
Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
Annotation: Thirteen-year-old Steven has a totally normal life: he plays drums in the All-Star Jazz band, has a crush on the hottest girl in the school, and is constantly annoyed by his five-year-old brother, Jeffrey. But when Jeffrey is diagnosed with leukemia, Steven's world is turned upside down. He is forced to deal with his brother's illness and his parents' attempts to keep the family in one piece. Salted with humor and peppered with devastating realities, DRUMS, GIRLS, AND DANGEROUS PIE is a heartwarming journey through a year in the life of a family in crisis.
So B. It by Sarah Weeks
Annotation: Heidi lives an unconventional lifestyle with her mentally disabled mother and their doting neighbor, Bernadette. A mysterious word in her mother's vocabulary leads Heidi on a cross-country journey in search of the secrets of her past.
Tangerine by Edward Bloor
Annotation: Paul Fisher plays soccer despite the thick glasses he wears because of a mysterious eye injury. When his family moves to Tangerine, Florida, strange things start to happen, but nothing is stranger than the secrets Paul finds out about his older brother, his new friends, and his own dangerous past.
Under the Persimmon Tree by Suzanne Fisher Staples
Annotation: Left alone in Afghanistan, young Najmah hopes to find her father and brother, who were conscripted by the Taliban, and begins the perilous journey to cross the border into Pakistan. There, an American woman teaches refugee children under the persimmon tree in her garden. International theme
For Freedom: The Story of a French Spy by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Annotation: Suzanne is 13 years old when her French city is bombed by Germans during WWII. Her life is changed radically, but through it all Suzanne stubbornly refuses to give in to fear. As a spy she passes coded messages over the city, despite the danger. Based on interviews with the real Suzanne, this is a moving story of one young woman’s courageous acts for her country and for freedom
International theme
Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi
Annotation: It is 1945, and life has been turned upside-down for ten-year-old Sookan and her family. As the Japanese military occupy North Korea, police captain Narita does his best to destroy everything of value to Sookan's family, but he cannot break their spirit. The war ends, but new suppression starts, and Sookan's family knows their only hope is a dangerous escape to South Korea. International theme
Crossing the Wire by Will Hobbs
Annotation: When his family is threatened with starvation, 15-year-old Victor Flores heads north in an attempt to "cross the wire" from Mexico into the United States. But with no money to pay the smugglers who sneak illegals across the border, Victor must fend for himself. International theme